Bream is a small rounded fish belonging to the bream genus. No other fish species were found within this genus. In nature, it occurs in the form of three subspecies: common bream, Danube and eastern. The bream is a member of the cyprinid family, which, in turn, is included in the cypriniform order. The largest bream weighed 11.6 kg.
What is a bream fish
The bream has a round body shape with a significant (relative to its size) distance between the upper and lower points on the back and belly, respectively. The height of the fish is 1/3 of the length. The head is shaped like the body and is small, as is the mouth. The latter goes into a tube, the length of which can change at the request of the fish itself.
The adult has a brown or gray back, a yellowish belly and a golden flank. Individuals of a young age are distinguished by a silvery tint. The length of the bream can reach 82 cm, by weight - 6 kg. Fish live for a long time - sometimes more than 20 years.
Where bream is found and how it is used
Mainpart of the range of this commercial fish is located on the territory of the former CIS and Russia. It can also be found in the northern and central parts of Europe. You can also catch bream in the rivers of Siberia, where it was specially brought for distribution purposes. It is less common in Transcaucasia. For habitat chooses fresh or brackish waters. Most often found in rivers.
The bream is considered a valuable commercial fish. The largest catch was recorded in the 30s of the 20th century - 120,000 tons. In the late 90s, they caught 25-32 thousand tons per year. Bream is used for the manufacture of canned fish and sale both fresh and processed (ice cream, dried, smoked) form.
Features of behavior and reproduction
Bream is a schooling fish. It swims in groups and sometimes in large flocks. Prefers deep areas with an abundance of plants. It is considered a smart and cautious species. Looking for food at the bottom, in a layer of silt. Therefore, you can learn about its movement by watching the emerging air bubbles from the bottom. During pack hunting, entire “roads” can form on the bottom of a reservoir. This behavior is more typical for bream swimming in very large water bodies.
Fish prefers snails, shells, larvae and tubifex. The bream spends the winter at depth. Some even go to sea. The larvae consume zooplankton, while the fry consume benthos. Bream breeds in small areas, while making a lot of noise.
What do they catch bream for?
Experienced fishermen use a variety of tackle and lures, the choice of each of which depends on the specific circumstances and characteristicsreservoir. The most commonly used are:
- worms, moths, maggots;
- various vegetable baits: semolina, corn kernels, peas, potato pieces or pearl barley;
- combinations of vegetable and animal baits, such as corn with a worm or maggot with barley;
- baits of artificial origin.
As practice shows, in the spring it is preferable to take vegetable or combined lures for fishing, and in summer - animals. In winter and autumn, it is more difficult to catch a bream, and the choice of a particular bait is determined experimentally.
The bream is caught on the bait. It can be both bottom and float. They use different types of hooks and lines, as well as accessories that complement them.
Trophy copies
Usually, the size of the bream is not large, but under certain conditions, a very large and massive individual can grow. Of course, catching one is a great success for the fisherman. Unfortunately, now giant breams are becoming less and less common. Active fishing and pollution of water bodies reduce the chances of trophies, as evidenced by the statistics.
The usual mass of bream does not exceed 3 kg. Anything above this value is already trophy specimens. The maximum dimensions of this fish are: weight - up to 6 kg and length - up to 70-100 cm. This is something that can really be caught in favorable conditions. However, there are exceptions to this rule, although they are rare. The world's largest bream was caught in Finland in Lake Vesijärv in 1912. The individual caught then weighed11.6 kg.
However, the largest bream weight is probably even greater. Truly huge breams could once be caught in the Vitebsk province, which was located on the territory of Russia. On Lake Virovlya, the weight of caught individuals could reach 16 kg!
The records of recent years are already more modest. So, in 2001, in Bavaria, on Lake Ismaninger, an individual weighing 8 kg and 81 cm long was caught. And in 2003, a bream weighing 7 kg and 75 cm long was caught there. Thus, the largest bream caught in recent years, is inferior in size and weight to those record specimens that were caught before. However, even the currently caught trophy specimens are quite large. This is evidenced by the photo of the largest bream.
How to catch trophy bream?
Large individuals are not found in all water bodies. Now they can be found in the lower reaches of such rivers as the Volga, Oka, Samara, Dnieper, Don. Important conditions for fattening fish are the size of the reservoir, its depth, a large amount of food. Moreover, the depth should be small. In addition, there should be a sufficient number of predatory fish in the reservoir that feed on bream fry, but do not touch large individuals. Various predators are suitable for this, with the exception of bottom pike. Removing juveniles gives more opportunities for fattening and growth of adult fish.
The ideal place can be closed-type lakes with shallow depth. Much less chance of catching big fish in deep water. Most likely a fishermanwill have to work hard and go around different water bodies before he can catch the trophy. But such fishing is very exciting and is of sporting interest.
Thus, the largest bream had a mass of over 10 kilograms. At present, such large specimens are apparently not to be found.
